JAMB Literature in English 1978 past questions and answers

Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy because

1. A.it is full of noblemen and ladies
2. B.it is set in Verona
3. C.it ends unhappily
4. D.Juliet is only fourteen years old
5. E.it has five acts.

Essentially, plays are meant

1. A.to be read for sheer pleasure
2. B.to make us laugh
3. C.to be presented on stage through words and action
4. D.to keep people out of trouble
5. E.to change the whole world.

From 'Viaticum' by B. Diop

In this poem, the repetitive pattern suggests

1. A.pain, agony and misery
2. B.ritual or established form of worship
3. C.the love of a mother for her child
4. D.the beauty of the full moon
5. E.the glorious lives of our ancestors.

The language of David Diop's 'Africa' suggests

1. A.the beauty of the African countryside
2. B.that black is beautiful
3. C.that the poet is sad because Africa has been exploited and laid waste for too long
4. D.that the poet remembers the great empire of Africa
5. E.that the poet sees Africa as a colonial power.

In 'I Will Pronounce Your Name' Senghor writes: 'Naëtt, that is the dry tornado, the hard clap of lightning'. The figure of speech used in the above line is:

1. A.metaphor
2. B.simile
3. C.hyperbole
4. D.irony
5. E.synecdoche.

In 'The Duel' Thomas ends his narrative

1. A.with a wish to see more duels fought
2. B.in celebration of female fidelity
3. C.in hopeless despair and anger
4. D.with an unexpected turn of events
5. E.in praise of matrimonial bliss.

In 'The Castle' Muir writes: 'Our only enemy was gold'. This is true because

1. A.the castle was made of gold
2. B.all the men swallowed gold
3. C.there was no gold to pay for arms
4. D.the captain stole all available gold
5. E.gold was the cause of their betrayal.

In 'The Flight to Australia', the following line occurs: 'Tier upon tier it towered, the terrible Appennines'. The figure of speech used in this line is known as

1. A.alliteration
2. B.litotes
3. C.exaggeration
4. D.parody
5. E.metonymy.

If we describe Kossoh Town Boy as an autobiography, we mean that it is

1. A.a historical novel
2. B.a piece of writing telling us about the life of its author
3. C.a short story
4. D.a narrative tale
5. E.a book well written.

Verse extract (Question 13)

In this verse the poet uses

1. A.alternate rhymes
2. B.monorhyme
3. C.couplets
4. D.triplets
5. E.blank verse.

This writer's tone is

1. A.melancholic
2. B.matter-of-fact
3. C.bitterly humorous
4. D.sympathetic
5. E.sad.

In the first sentence, cars are described in terms of

1. A.birds
2. B.ants
3. C.fish
4. D.lamp-posts
5. E.pretty girls.

Point out the odd item:

1. A.A Raisin' in the sun
2. B.Twelfth Night
3. C.Ozidi
4. D.The Concubine
5. E.Romeo and Juliet.

An image in poetry usually gives a clue to one of the following:

1. A.rhyme
2. B.assonance
3. C.paradox
4. D.theme
5. E.refrain.

Prose extract (Question 18)

The mood conveyed here is one of

1. A.excitement
2. B.sadness
3. C.joy
4. D.triumph
5. E.elation.

One of the following terms applies to the discussion of both tragedy and comedy:

1. A.climax
2. B.happy ending
3. C.tragic hero
4. D.alliteration
5. E.stanza.

One of the peculiar features of drama in general is

1. A.humour
2. B.satire
3. C.sarcasm
4. D.action
5. E.exposition.

Dialogue is important in drama because

1. A.it always makes the audience laugh
2. B.it is like conversation
3. C.it reveals the minds of the characters
4. D.it makes the play last longer on the stage
5. E.it makes the characters honest.

A good poem must

1. A.be about love
2. B.have a regular rhythm
3. C.rhyme
4. D.be difficult to understand
5. E.none of the above.

One of the following is a narrative technique in the novel:

1. A.character
2. B.interesting story
3. C.flashback
4. D.logical conclusion
5. E.social relevance.

One of these statements is true of the novel:

1. A.it is an exact reproduction of historical events
2. B.characters are unimportant in it
3. C.it is always the story of the author's life
4. D.it deals with human experience
5. E.it does not make use of imagery.

As a character, Ozidi, in J.P. Clark's play of that name, is ruined by

1. A.too great interest in women
2. B.too much love of peace
3. C.excessive belief in his own powers
4. D.too great dependence on his grand-mother
5. E.the wickedness of his enemies.

Twelfth Night (Shakespeare)

In Twelfth Night, the lines above were spoken by

1. A.Curio
2. B.Valentine
3. C.Orsino
4. D.Antonio
5. E.Sir Andrew.

Ihuoma cannot be a successful wife in The Concubine because

1. A.she is troublesome and cruel
2. B.the sea god, her spirit husband, has put a curse on her
3. C.nobody wishes to marry her in the village
4. D.she is too old to bear children
5. E.she is a widow.

The old and new values in No Longer at Ease are represented by

1. A.The European Club and Joseph
2. B.Obi and Clara
3. C.The Umuofia Progressive Union and Obi
4. D.Mr. Green and Miss Williamson
5. E.none of the above.

Achebe's language and style in No Longer at Ease is remarkable

1. A.for its short and simple sentences
2. B.for its day-to-day expression
3. C.for its reflection of the speech of the ordinary man
4. D.for using the speech style of most African communities
5. E.for reflecting the speech patterns of the different segments of the Nigerian society.

In Wole Soyinka's poem, 'I Think It Rains', rain symbolizes

1. A.the rise of sudden cloud from ashes
2. B.loosening of parched tongues from the mouth
3. C.inconveniences
4. D.relief, and a feeling of goodness
5. E.none of these.

The casualties referred to in 'Casualties' are

1. A.people killed during the civil war
2. B.those who were wounded and had to endure a lot of pain
3. C.those who lost their properties and relations
4. D.victims of the Nigerian Civil War, both the living and the dead
5. E.none of these.

From T.S. Eliot's 'Journey of the Magi'

The Magi are no longer at ease because

1. A.they suffered a lot on their way to Bethlehem
2. B.they found greater spiritual satisfaction from their journey
3. C.death and birth are one and the same thing
4. D.their Kingdoms can no longer offer them satisfaction
5. E.the world has changed for the worse.

Mr. Johnson, by Joyce Cary, is an interesting novel for the reason that

1. A.Mr. Johnson the chief character, is a typical African
2. B.Mr. Rudbeck is a British colonial officer
3. C.it is a great love story between Mr. Johnson and his wife, Bamu
4. D.Mr. Johnson is an active character full of drama, song and poetry
5. E.all the characters are nice and considerate people.

Wole Soyinka's 'Telephone Conversation' is

1. A.an attack on the British telephone system
2. B.a complaint about the difficulty of getting telephones installed in private houses
3. C.about the colour of Soyinka's passport
4. D.a humorous but satirical comment on colour prejudice in Britain
5. E.about the game of hide and seek.

From Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare)

Juliet is referring in the above passage to

1. A.Tybalt
2. B.Mercutio
3. C.Old Capulet
4. D.Lady Montague
5. E.Romeo.

Which of the following statements reflects best the situation revealed above

1. A.Malvolio is greatly admired by Maria and Sir Toby
2. B.Malvolio's dress and bearing will please Lady Olivia very much
3. C.Malvolio is deceived into doing things hated by Olivia
4. D.Malvolio is a heathen and pedant
5. E.the author of Twelfth Night pokes fun at foolishly misguided people, liked Malvolio here.

The mood of the above poem is

1. A.optimism
2. B.pessimism
3. C.optimism mixed with pessimism
4. D.much optimism qualified by a little pessimism
5. E.much pessimism lightened by a little optimism.

In the fiction No Longer at Ease, by Chinua Achebe, Obiajulu Okonkwo's fall can be traced to the fact that

1. A.the Nigerian society is often wicked to the individual
2. B.he is at bottom a very bad man
3. C.he believes in using bribes to get to the top
4. D.the weaknesses within him and the society unite to pull him down
5. E.he fancies women too much.

From Thomas Hardy's 'The Duel'

The theme of this poem is

1. A.bravery
2. B.honour
3. C.betrayal
4. D.death of a fool
5. E.the evil of duelling

In the above poem, Soyinka,

1. A.describes nightfall and its effect on him
2. B.does not wish to surrender to night
3. C.rejects the night's presence
4. D.says that night has no progress
5. E.does not need protection from the dangers of night.

In this poem,

1. A.the gods are being abused for their causing a natural disaster
2. B.the poet's father is being 'cursed' for stopping the children's play
3. C.a natural disaster is linked to the moral and religious life of a people
4. D.the 'golden girls' are being praised for leaving home to go to the city
5. E.nature is seen as an enemy.

The poet varies the lengths of the lines skilfully

1. A.to show the speed, power and destructiveness of the storm
2. B.to create pleasant sounds
3. C.to conform to normal poetic practice
4. D.to create a mood of fear
5. E.to show his cleverness.

Gabriel Okara's 'The Call of the River Nun', treats

1. A.a personal problem that is of no significance to humanity in general
2. B.a situation that has universal significance
3. C.the River Nun as symbolizing decline
4. D.the River Nun as a ghost
5. E.the River Nun as a symbol of adulthood.

The Concubine by Elechi Amadi. The title of this novel is justified because

1. A.Ihuoma, the heroine, is everyone's concubine
2. B.Ihuoma having once been married to Emenike has vowed never to marry again
3. C.everyone who married Ihuoma or expressed a wish to do so came to harm
4. D.Ihuoma prefers to be a mistress rather than wife
5. E.being the spirit-wife of the jealous Sea-king, any marriage subsequently contracted cannot be valid; she is condemned to the status of a concubine.

'The Vultures', by David Diop

The theme of this poem is

1. A.Vultures
2. B.Oppression of Africans by European colonialists and the African's hope for independence
3. C.Swaziland's mines and Europe's factories
4. D.Bloodstained monuments
5. E.Books without love.

One of the following writers is better known as a playwright than as a novelist

1. A.C. Achebe
2. B.C. Ekwensi
3. C.W. Soyinka
4. D.J.P. Clark
5. E.E.G. Okara.

The plot of a novel is best described as

1. A.the bare outline of the story arranged in logical order
2. B.the story in all its details
3. C.the story grossly elaborated
4. D.a summary of the story
5. E.the beginning, middle and end of the story.

A narrative poem must

1. A.preach a sermon
2. B.tell a story
3. C.describe natural scenery
4. D.argue a question
5. E.propound a philosophy.

Literature is studied as a subject at school because

1. A.it exposes students to the realities of life
2. B.it provides entertainment
3. C.it merely gives additional work to students
4. D.it teaches the use of words
5. E.it provides a means to kill time.